296 IRRIGATION FARMING. 



Now suppose this tree four years old and developing a 

 crop of fruit. It will of necessity require more than 

 three times as much moisture for the perfedl develop- 

 ment of the fruit and wood combined as it did for the 

 wood growth alone. 



Apricots should be planted, pruned, cultivated, 

 and irrigated the same as the peach. Alkali soil is not 

 a detriment to the apricot if not too strong and often 

 gets the blame that belongs to irrigation. Young apri- 

 cot trees, after bearing their first crop, should be 

 pruned at once, and the lateral branches only should be 

 shortened in. If irrigation is employed, then water 

 and cultivation must be applied immediately in order 

 to start the tree growing, so that it may develop fruit 

 buds for the next year's crop. If the tree has borne 

 very heavily and the wood growth has been light, bet- 

 ter not prune at all, but do not negledl cultivation after 

 the crop is gathered. As this tree gets older it needs 

 .scarcely any pruning. 



The Cherry. — This fine pit fruit is most often 

 planted on very light soils, fifteen to eighteen feet 

 apart, and is at home on ridge land. Trees may be 

 planted in apple orchards, but the irrigation system 

 should be distind; from that of the apple trees. 

 Mulching is not recommended, as it induces the roots 

 to take on an upward tendency, which is to be dis- 

 countenanced in all irrigated fruits. Cherry trees drop 

 blossoms and fruit sometimes because of a deficiency of 

 lime in the soil ; sometimes drouth may cause them to 

 drop, and if the trees have been growing strongly by 

 too much irrigation, unripe wood may have had some- 

 thing to do with it. In the latter case lime worked 



